12.48 The Committee on Indian Depredations was created by
a Senate resolution on March 15, 1893, and superseded a select
committee on Indian depredations that had been established in
1889 to deal with the increased volume of Indian depredation
claims. The committee was terminated by approval of S. Res. 43,
67th Cong., on April 18, 1921, which also eliminated many other
obsolete standing and select committees.

12.49 The records of the standing committee (4 in.)
consist of committee papers, 1893-1905 (3 in.), and petitions and
memorials referred to the committee, 1893-1901 (1 in.). The
committee papers contain executive and other correspondence
referring to the Indian Depredation Act passed on March 3, 1891
(26 Stat. 851), which established the Office of the Assistant
Attorney General to oversee claims cases. The committee papers
include a list of suggestions concerning committee investigations
and a list of judgments in claims cases (53A-F14). Legislative
case files on bills referred to the committee, 1901-21, are in
the series of papers supporting specific bills and resolutions.

12.50 The petitions and memorials also concern
administration of the Indian Depredation Act. Most petitioners
requested that claims for crimes committed during wartime be
considered eligible, because the act stipulated that only
depredations committed in times of peace with the Indians could
be considered for claims.

Bibliographic note: Web version based on Guide to the Records of the United States Senate at the National Archives, 1789-1989: Bicentennial Edition (Doct. No. 100-42). By Robert W. Coren, Mary Rephlo, David Kepley, and Charles South. Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1989.